Individualized instruction
Individualized Instruction is a method of instruction in which content, instructional materials, media, and pace are based upon the abilities and interests of each individual learner.
Individualized Instruction is not a one-to-one student/teacher ratio, as many people would assume. It is not even one-to-one tutoring.
At the very least, neither of these is even realistically possible. No school system could afford anything close to a one-to-one student/teacher ratio or private tutoring. Even the most expensive public school system in the United States (Washington, DC, 2003, approximately $11,000 per student per year) would require at least 5 students per teacher to pay teacher salaries, without anything left for buildings or non-teaching staff.
But in a traditional classroom environment lectures consume approximately 80% of an average teacher's in-class time, to say nothing of the time needed to prepare lessons.
Yet lecturing is an inherently inefficient method of conveying information. The average student retains only approximately 10% of what is presented in a lecture, but without substantial reinforcement that figure falls to an abysmal 2%, or less, within 24 hours.
Why waste the time of either teacher or student on a process that is so ineffective? Freeing that time allows teachers the luxury of more time to work privately with individual students as needed.
A method of managing the instructional process without requiring live lectures from teachers. Instead, Educational Research Associates concluded that placing greater reliance upon well-designed instructional materials – whether audio, video, multimedia CAI, or simply a good textbook – can hardly be less efficient than the lecture method, but yields a huge net benefit by freeing teachers to focus upon the needs and problems of individual students.
The initial content for this article was provided by Educational Research Associates, Portland OR.